The present invention relates to a lighting system for use in a vehicle cabin.
A previously known lighting system for use in a vehicle cabin includes a ceiling lamp arranged to a roof substantially in the center portion of the vehicle cabin for generally illuminating a cabin. The ceiling lamp turns on and off by manual operation of its own switch, or automatic operation of a door switch upon opening and closing of a door.
On the other hand, with a vehicle, it is important that a passenger who will get out the vehicle in the dark or at night can quickly view the road outside the door to ensure his security, and smoothly get out the vehicle.
It is known that human eyes are easy to fix to a spot which is sufficiently lighter than its surroundings. This is the ocular guide effect (see, for example, "Report of Fundamental Research on How Guide Lamp is Seen" published in 1984 by Lighting Society in Japan). This effect is commonly applied to interior and exterior lightings.
However, with a vehicle having such previously known lighting systems, a passenger seated in the rear seats cannot judge whether the vehicle has stopped due to arrival at a destination, due to a traffic signal, resulting in confusion and unnecessary activity. Further, when it is time for the passengers to exit the vehicle, preparations must be made under visual conditions having insufficient light, lowering preparation efficiency for exiting with the possibility of an object left in the vehicle or a window unclosed. Furthermore, with the oral information for his preparations before arrival at a destination, the passenger can make preparations in advance. In this case, however, it is not desirable to turn on a ceiling lamp due to its interference to driving, resulting in eventual difficulty of making exit preparations. Further, even with the ceiling lamp turned on, the passenger has difficulty in checking the vicinity of his feet due to insufficient illumination.
On the other hand, with any door opened, a lamp such as a ceiling lamp turns on to uniformly illuminate the entirety of the cabin. However, the lamp is not constructed to safely guide a passenger for efficient exit of the vehicle.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a lighting system for use in a vehicle cabin which can provide predetermined information to a passenger when getting out of the vehicle.